Design & Decor
Big Ideas for Not So Big Spaces
Discover how attention to the small gives character to the whole, as told by architect, author and cultural visionary Sarah Susanka. Her latest book "Inside the Not So Big House" (Taunton Press, 2005).

In my first book, "The Not So Big House," I made the case that a house isn't really a home unless it is filled with the personality of its inhabitants. But how do you accomplish that? Most homeowners assume this means filling the spaces you have with the things that have meaning to you, and certainly this is an important step in the right direction. But a house that really sings has character that's built in, so that even if the house were completely emptied of furniture and objects collected over a lifetime, the house would still feel warm and inviting. It would still have a character all its own.

Sadly, all too many of the new houses and remodels built today would fail this test. To keep construction costs down, all the money available goes into square footage, leaving little or no money for the specific details that can really make a house a beautiful place. In an effort to remedy this situation, I tried with my first book to help people looking for a more personal home understand what's missing in the average house. I suggested that the key to creating a home with intrinsic character is to keep the overall size down so that you can reapportion some dollars out of square footage and into the details that make the house a delight to live in. Details do add to the cost of a home, but a handy rule of thumb is that if you strive to reduce the square footage you were originally planning by about one third, and make available the dollars saved for personalizing your home, you'll have enough money to do the kind of detailing shown in my new book.

We've all heard the phrase, "God is in the details," made famous by architect Mies van der Rohe in 1959, but what does it really mean? What is a detail anyway? The details illustrated in my book are not what interior designers would call accessories - things like vases, wall hangings and artwork. If you were to turn the house upside down and shake it, all those accessories would fall instantly from their various perches. The details we're discussing her are built right into the house, so they're attached permanently and won't fall off. They're designed in from the beginning to help both personalize the house and make it function more efficiently.

To architects, the word "detail" implies the marriage of materials to create design elements or combinations that are built in during the construction (or remodeling) process. Most people think of details as a relatively small thing - a doorknob, a newel post, a shelf bracket - but the word "detail" can also refer to larger elements such as window seats and breakfast nooks, hearths and accent walls, built-in cabinets and kitchen islands. The word "detail" can be used to describe materials and how they are used, such as concrete for countertops, hand-rubbed fir for ceiling beams and stainless steel for the stair rails; and it also can refer to design elements that are not objects at all, but rather qualities that carry throughout the house, such as a palette of colors, a particular surface texture or a character of glass that creates a particular quality of light.

Appreciating details is really just a process of learning to zoom in and focus on what's important at this smaller scale of consideration. Some details are so simple they're hardly noticeable and they blend in perfectly. Other details intentionally draw attention to themselves as they perform their task. Best of all, in design there is no single right answer. There are literally millions of solutions to every challenge. All you have to do is let go into the process and allow the creative juices to roll.

A house that's simply lived in can provide shelter, but it doesn't do much in the way of inspiration. A house filled with details can be a highly personal expression of all that has meaning to you. It will be, in a very real way, a reflection of who you really are. And there will be no doubt in anyone's mind that this is HOME in the best sense of the word.

Below are some practical design ideas from Sarah's book.

The marriage of materials
This is one of the best examples to illustrate what architectural detailing is all about. Wherever two materials come together, there's an opportunity for a creative detail. By interspersing oak floorboards with square slate tiles, the standard threshold strip between the two is avoided and a graceful entrance is guaranteed.

Built-ins to expand living space
Even when floor space is limited, thoughtfully crafted built-ins with storage and seating allow a space to do double duty.

Desk nook built into a room
Place or build two deep bookshelves against the corners of an exterior wall, to either side of a window. Now connect the bookshelves with a desktop. Although you've taken away floor space, it will feel as though you've added more by giving the room more functions.

Shelves across a window
Add storage space and grab a little extra privacy - without loosing natural light - by placing shelves across a window. Glass shelves supported by brackets attached to the window frame are an easy fix.

Interior windows
An operable window (double hung, casement, awning, the choice is yours) set in a wall between rooms will connect the rooms while maintaining a controllable degree of separation.

Unique solutions
A room with unique dimensions often provides an opportunity for a detail that's both unusual and personal, such as this child's bed housed within a dormer. It's a cozy room within a room.

Big impact from a simple curve
Few things add energy to a room like a curve. In a kitchen, for instance, use curved brackets to support an overhanging countertop or tabletop. The brackets can be cut from plywood. It's the shape of the curve that matters, not the richness of the bracket material.

Floating ceiling lattice
A great way to define a work space or sitting area is with a wood lattice hung from the ceiling. In a typical 8-foot-high room, a lattice ceiling lowered to 7 feet adds intimacy. Put recessed lights above the lattice and let the light shine through to create a delightful patterned effect.

Ceiling that defines space
Even without walls, a ceiling can define a room within a larger area. Use wood or sheetrock to add a curve to a ceiling to create a sheltered and defined activity area below.

Maximize storage space
Sneak a little storage and display space into any area that is largely unused. Align the top surface of a bookshelf with a window sill to welcome the outside in.

Susanka's first book, "The Not So Big House," (Taunton Press, 1998) spent two years among the top five best-sellers on Amazon.com's home and garden list. The book and its sequel "Creating the Not So Big House (Taunton Press, 2000) have now sold more than 600,000 copies combined. Susanka is a contributing editor to Inspired House and Fine Homebuilding magazines. She was a principal at residential architecture firm SALA Architects in Minneapolis prior to her work as an author and public speaker. Coauthor Marc Vassallo is a trained architect, writer and editor who writes about residential architecture.